I found this on Marc and Angel Hack Life. There have never been truer words published. I need to really rely on these! I'm highlighting what speaks most to me. It's just easier than me rambling on.
5 Things to Stop Doing
1. Stop stalling and being lazy.
You can’t build a good reputation or a successful way of life based on what you could do or might do someday. The quality of your life is in direct proportion to your commitment to get things done, regardless of your chosen path.
So don’t sit there and say, “Somebody should really do something about that someday.” Be that somebody, and make today the day.
Read Eat That Frog!
2. Stop neglecting your self-control.
Nobody ever wrote down a plan to be broke, lazy, out of shape, uneducated, etc. These things happen when you lose your self-control.
Showing a lack of self-control is in the same vein granting authority to others: “Perhaps I need someone else to help control me.” And if you’re lucky enough tohave good friends and family, they might try. But the truth is no one is going to look out for you every second. No one is going to follow you around and say, “Don’t buy that, get off the couch, take a jog, go to the library, etc.”
You, and YOU ALONE, must make the choice between what is right and what is easy in your life.
3. Stop looking outside yourself.
The problem is that when you think you have to LOOK for things in life like love, meaning, and inspiration, the LOOKING implies that these things are somehow hiding behind some bushes somewhere, just waiting to be discovered. But that’s not the case.
In life you have to CREATE your own love,
define your own meaning, and harbor your own inspiration. This process starts on the inside, not somewhere else. Much of this can be accomplished simply by staying true to your values, pursuing your passions, learning more today than you knew yesterday, and helping others smile as you go.
4. Stop letting negative people drain you.
You might think being alone makes you lonely, but that’s not entirely true. Being surrounded by the wrong people is the loneliest place in the world.
Before you diagnose yourself as an unhappy person,
first be sure that you are not simply surrounded by negative people constantly trying to bring you down to their level. Read Emotional Vampires
.
5. Stop belittling your efforts and your progress.
Appreciate where you are now and keep fighting for where you want to be tomorrow. You are not a failure until you give up on yourself. Keep going!
Hard times may hold you down for awhile but they will not last forever, and when all is said and done, you will be able to stand even taller than those who didn’t earn it.
Seriously, you may not be where you want to be yet, but look how far you’ve come. Be thankful that you’re not where you used to be. If you have no other testimony right now, you have this one: “I’m still here trying.”
5 Things to Start Doing
1. Start living.
Don’t simply exist in this world, grab life’s full potential by the horns and ride it out. Dare life to be all it can be.
Make it a memorable, gripping account of accomplishment. Make it a thrilling, challenging, bold adventure. Make life a passionate, enduring, poetic romance.
Whatever it is you decide to do with your life, LIVE it! Get going! Move forward, aim high, plan your takeoff. Don’t just sit on the runway. Adjust your attitude and gain some altitude.
Read 1,000 Little Things.
2. Start taking chances that feel right.
Life will try to break you sometimes; nothing and no one can completely protect you from it. Remaining alone in your comfort zone won’t either, for endless, stagnant solitude will also break you with yearning.
You’re human. You have to love. You have to feel. You have to strive. You are here to risk your heart by putting it into something you believe in. If you avoid taking these chances, one thing is certain, you will make is safely to death someday, feeling empty and unfulfilled.
3. Start indulging in meaningful challenges.
What a true blessing it is that there is always work to be done. Because the real value of any accomplishment is not in the end result, it is in the process of accomplishment.
Success is a state of mind, and the most reliable way to reach that state is by working mindfully through a meaningful challenge. Such a challenge might seem somewhat overwhelming when you first encounter it, yet as you progress through it, you transform the work from overwhelming to fulfilling.
Read The 4-Hour Workweek
.
4. Start nurturing your real family.
Family is built with love; it’s not determined by marriage certificates, divorce papers, and formal adoption documents. Families grow from the heart, through mutual love and respect. The only time family becomes nullified is when the ties in the heart are cut. If you cut the ties, these people are not your family. If you build the ties, these people are your family. So build ties with the right people and nurture them with love.
5. Start making time for YOU.
There is objective time meant for focused work, but also subjective time where the pulse of your life breathes – your relationships, your awareness, your hobbies, etc.
So find the time – the time to read, to smell the flowers, to take a walk in the wilderness, to share a laugh, to learn a fun craft, to try a new recipe, to explore somewhere new, to really be with someone you love, to
paint your dreams, or even to just do nothing and relax for a while.
Find time for YOU
